Book One: Worlds Apart
by AXMena
Summary: The story revamped and retold; same hero, new protagonist, bigger story, and eventually greater stakes. KH1 basic canon elements for this first of a three part series. The pattern is light to dark as things progress. Currently rated M mostly for language. Reviews appreciated, constructive criticism greatly desired.
1. Chapter 1

Wow, it's been a long time! Started this years ago and put it on the shelf when life took over. Now I'm back on track and pushing through it. Here it finally is! The first page of my KH behemoth of a fanfic. Enjoy, and don't forget to review!

I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any other Disney/SE names, places, or things you might recognize. However, I am greatly possessive of my OCs ;)

* * *

CH. I

Her eyes snapped open and her head shot up from the pillow. There was a scream. She could swear she heard a scream. Why else would she be awake?

 _Akari._

She shoved off the warmth of her covers and made her way out into the hall. Her bare feet pressed lightly into the soft carpet with every step as she approached another door. It was only slightly ajar and a faint light shone from within. Slowly, she pressed a hand to the door and moved it aside, peeking in cautiously.

"Ari," she whispered. "You awake?"

What greeted her was a pair of wide, dark blue eyes illuminated by the soft light emanating from a small lamp sitting on the edge of a vanity to the far left of the room. The girl, whom she called Ari, simply blinked in response, then hung her head, staring blankly at her hands folded over the blanket covering her legs.

Sighing, she stepped into the room and sat down on the younger girl's bed. "Was that you I heard? Did you wake up screaming?"

"I..." she shrugged, not really sure how to answer. Had she screamed? She didn't remember. All that was left of her dissipated sleep was a shiver lingering in her spine and goosebumps spread up and down her arms. "Maybe," she sighed. "It was just a nightmare. No big deal, Yumi."

But the older girl looked skeptical. _Must have been some nightmare_ , she thought. Not one memory came to mind of Ari ever having screamed over a dream for as long as she had known her. "Sure you don't want to talk about it?"

She just shook her head, still staring at the dark covers. A yawn escaped her, then, "I'm too tired... Maybe in the morning," as she slipped the blanket back over her shoulders and snuggled into her pillow, leaving Yumi staring at the back of her dark haired head.

With a reluctant sigh, Yumi finally stood and walked away. She threw back one last look at her sleeping younger cousin, the worry evident in her eyes, then pulled the door shut behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

CH. II

"Done!" The slamming of a door echoed through the house. "Akari Morance is now officially a **freshman**! Oh yeah!"

A small laugh followed from somewhere within the house, and the newly dubbed freshman walked further inside only to find herself in the kitchen. There, a young girl with strawberry blond hair sat at a four seater breakfast table making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"Reina," she cried happily. "Is that **yumminess** for **me**?" Her dark blue eyes danced with excitement as she slid herself into a seat opposite the other girl.

"No way, Ari! Get your own!" Reina shut her own blue eyes tight as she stuck out her tongue.

"Oh, no fair! I'm hungry, too! You're a horrible sister," she pouted, flipping stray hair out of her face, her scarcely placed purple highlights contrasting briefly with her natural black hair.

"Says the lazy older one!"

"Hey! I've got... responsibilities and... other, y'know, **things** to worry about."

"Like what? Being lazy **and** fat?"

"No," she growled, glaring at the other girl playfully. "Like... becoming head of special events!" She squealed.

"Nuh-uh! You got it?!" The newly made sandwich dropped from her small hands onto the table as she leapt up in surprise, leaning in toward the fourteen year old.

"Yep!" she nodded enthusiastically. "I just talked to the teacher who sponsors it. I got V.P.! **So. Awesome!** "

"What about 'Karu?"

Ari smiled at the thought of her best friend. "Hikaru? She's Secretary," she told her sister. "We signed up together, remember? Since I got V.P., they let me put in a few recommendations. Oh! And Jay's Assistant Choreographer," she continued on, naming a few other friends and their jobs, or lack thereof. She and her closest friends of equal age had been vying to take charge of special events there as they had in middle school, but only a select few were lucky enough to make it where only seniors or juniors tended to rule.

"Wow. But you guys actually got in! The seniors are going to hate you **all** ," the twelve year old laughed, her bubbly voice forcing Ari's smile wider.

"Probably. Maybe. If we weren't **so cool** , I'm sure they would," she winked.

Reina just rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. **Cool.** "

Sarcasm dripped from her voice, but her older sister happily ignored it. "Exactly. I'm glad you agree."

An hour later, Ari found herself curled up on a couch, the black ink on the pages of a book she'd been meaning to read for quite some time staring up at her. Her eyes would occasionally scan the words, then shoot right back up to where they'd started. The words she read would not process in her mind. She heard them there aloud in her head, but the information would not stick. There was something scratching at the back of her mind, nagging, whispering inaudible things, knocking against a brick wall that adamantly stood guard against anything that dared venture to the foreground. Just as frustrating, something snagged itself in her stomach, turning and twisting and tickling until she could no longer stand it, and for the life of her she couldn't figure out why. It was as if she'd forgotten something incredibly important, and now something was due to go horribly wrong.

But so far, everything was going great! She had finished middle school as an honor roll student. She was already gaining prestige in high school before the year had actually begun... The summer was already turning out to be the prelude to a magnitude of blessings.

Then again, there was that one exception; no matter how much she tried to forget, to dismiss, to deny the nightmare she'd had that night, it would not leave her be. In fact, that had been almost two weeks ago now, and since then she'd had another one almost exactly like it just the previous night, though this one had ended differently. Instead of jolting awake, she had woken up feeling utterly confused, as if she had just been handed one of the most difficult puzzles ever created and told to solve it. Worse: on a time limit.

The more she thought about them, the more they got all jumbled up and merged into one big messy memory. But no matter how warped they became, the feelings they left her with were always the same: Fear, foreboding, loneliness, vulnerability, paranoia, sadness, anxiety, urgency.

Something was definitely about to go horribly wrong.

"You should have stayed a bit," a light voice said from beside her.

She looked over to see her best friend pushing the front door closed behind her before dropping herself down onto the other end of the couch. Hikaru, whom she'd met years ago away on vacation one summer, never knocked anymore, but it was no surprise to the girls. After all, their home was Hikaru's home; the girl spent so much time over at their house that she even had some of her own stuff in a former guest room that now belonged to her. Yumi was already considering giving the girl a key. For now, they simply kept the doors unlocked for her.

"You missed out on some craziness," she said.

"I bet," Ari murmured.

"How's your book?" She tucked a bit of straight black hair behind her ear.

"Don't know," Ari shrugged. "Haven't really been paying attention."

Hikaru's brows rose. "Oh? Distracted? I wondered why you left early. Everyone was, actually."

"...Sorry. Got a lot on my mind," she felt a touch bad for leaving her friends so early; normally, they would all get together after school, especially at the end of the year, but she didn't want to be the downer.

"Have something to do with your nightmare?"

This surprised her. She peered at the other girl curiously. "I thought you forgot."

Hikaru shook her head. "You don't have them often, Ari." A slow shrug was her only response. "Don't wanna talk about it?" Another shrug. Hikaru sighed. If Ari was so bothered by it that she didn't even want to talk about it, then there was nothing she could do until the other girl was ready to vocalize her thoughts. But the idea that something could affect her this much poked at her heart, and it refused to let the issue go. Still, she knew her best friend would tell her in time. But until then...

"Ari's dreams are always really weird."

Hikaru had no choice but to turn to the only other source available at that moment, and that source was the twelve year old now sitting in another room on the other end of the house, watching TV and twirling a soda can in her hand.

"Yeah, I know. But she never reacts like this... Did you hear when she screamed?"

The blond shook her head. "I thought I did, but I was half asleep, so I can't really remember. But I heard about it from Yumi."

She nodded in response. "Same here." Silence. Then, "Did she tell her anything?"

Another shake of the head. "Nope. At least, that's what Yumi told me."

Hikaru sighed. Another few seconds of silence passed. Then she heard the younger one's soft voice as she said, "I don't like it when she has bad dreams. Something always happens when she has them."

This made her brows shoot up as she blinked her dark brown eyes curiously. "What do you mean?"

A shrug. "I don't know. It's like... people fight or someone gets hurt or... I don't know. It's creepy. Like they're warnings or something."

"Um... premonitions?"

Reina giggled. "She only wishes she were that special," she smiled teasingly.

Hikaru laughed, too, then shook her head. "She's got pretty good intuition, though. Maybe that's it?"

At this, Reina shrugged. "Maybe."

A blanket of silence fell on the two as they both seemed to retreat into their own thoughts. Hikaru almost smiled at the thought that once her best friend got over it and finally came out with it, they would be laughing their little heads off at her mind's insanity. _That's right_ , she thought. _Just her bizarre imagination acting up again._

* * *

The hands on the clock read 7:42. _Really? Not even eight?_ Work for the day was done much earlier than any of them had originally anticipated. Which wasn't to say that Yumi was complaining. Oh, no. As much as she loved her job, she always welcomed the much needed breaks. _Good news for me. Maybe I can take the girls out to celebrate tonight..._

"Good job, everyone," a man's voice called over the bustle and shuffle of everyone cleaning up and preparing to leave. "See you all bright and early tomorrow!" This earned him a few groans, and said groans earned a bit of laughter. He only shook his head.

Yumi smiled at her manager, Alan, eliciting a small chuckle, too, before she lifted herself off her chair and swung her purse over her shoulder, the thought of a celebration effectively wiped clean from her mind. With a quick wave and enthusiastic, "good night!," she pushed open the heavy door of the studio and made her way down the stairs, listening absently to the patting of her shoes against the tiles echo against the bare walls.

"Yumi, wait up!"

She halted, looking up in time to see Alan duck his brown-topped head back in from over the rail and run down to meet her. When he did, her dark eyes met his hazel ones curiously. "What's up?"

"Hey, listen. Since you drive farther than the rest of us, I wanted to tell you – that last call I got was about the weather."

"Weather?" She didn't remember anything particularly interesting on the weather channel this morning.

He nodded. "I was told it looks really bad out there. Careful on your way home."

She blinked, lost. "What are you talking about?"

He shook his head. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "They just said the weather looks fucked. I don't know what's happening, but just watch the road and drive easy."

"Like a storm?" Her tone was incredulous.

He made his way back up to the studio as he nodded. "Let me know you got home safe. I'll see you in the morning," and the conversation was over.

For a moment, she stood there in shock, then suddenly whipped her head around and flew down the remaining flights of stairs, throwing open the exit and taking long strides through the parking lot. Her short hair was violently swept up in front of her face, but she fought the urge to hold it back and look around. If there really was some big storm coming, she couldn't waste time marveling. She needed to be home with the girls.

Fumbling with her keys, she unlocked the door, swung it open, and threw herself in the seat, the door slamming shut almost immediately after her. She winced, cursing the weather's treatment of her precious car.

She started up the engine and pulled out her phone, staring at the clock on the dashboard as the phone rang softly against her ear. In bright grey, the numbers 7:59 stared back at her. She was on the road within seconds.

"Dammit," she cursed, flipping her phone shut and then flipping it open again. _Redial_ , was the thought she sent it, as if it would comply as she glared at it before pressing the button and sticking it to her ear again. Nothing. "Shit. Answer your phone, Ari," and she threw it in the passenger seat.

Her headlights flicked on automatically. It was getting dark.

Her hand reached for the radio dial. Her heart rate picked up, and adrenaline began pumping through her body. There was no one else on the road.

Why the hell was it so dark?

"Jeez. What's with this weather?" None of the stations were working. Nibbling on her bottom lip, she jammed her shaking finger into the dial, effectively ridding her nerves of the static.

She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of a high pitch note, the first note of her ring tone. She cursed. _What the hell,_ and she glared at the device, swearing to change it as soon as she got home before answering. "Hello?" A sigh of relief flowed through her at the sound of her cousin's voice. "Finally. Hey, are you watching the weather?" She listened. "Well, it looks like a really bad storm is heading our way. I'm on my way home now... Let me know if you learn anything before I get there." _Click._ Sighing, exasperated, she tucked the phone under her purse in the passenger seat, taking care to make sure it was directly within her reach, then brought her eyes back to the road.

Her heart stopped and her eyes widened. The brakes screeched as she cursed, swerving the car abruptly to the right. It came to a sudden stop only inches away from a metal rail. She cursed again, slamming her palms on the steering wheel as she did so. "Was that a fucking _dog_?! Who the fuck?!" There weren't many houses around for another couple of miles. It was a suburban business hub, the area she was returning from. Had the dog jumped from a car window? There was no one else on the road. A stray? But strays here were a rarity.

She glanced into her rear view mirror, but all she saw were the faint red taillights of her own car and darkness beyond. It occurred to her that the smart thing to do was continue the drive home. The weather didn't look the least bit inviting, and it was her life or some dog's, which probably had a better chance of surviving on its own out there than she did, anyway. But her conscience would have none of it. Reluctantly, she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened her door, letting out one foot, paused, then grabbed her phone as an afterthought. The wind blew her door open the rest of the way. _Dammit_ , she scolded. _This is crazy._ The adrenaline rush picked up again, and she hesitated before stepping out of the car, steadying herself with a hand on its roof. She turned in the direction she had come from, her hair whipping at her face before she forced it aside.

Her body froze. She felt her blood run frigid. What she saw, she could not explain. A scream was building in her throat, but something blocked its path.

Whatever it was she was looking at was like no pet she'd ever seen, and there were many of them. More and more seemed to grow right out of the darkness, and only her eyes darted back and forth between them. She could not register how many were coming her way. They had completely surrounded her.

* * *

"Ari! 'Karu!"

A sigh escaped Ari's lips as she clicked off the TV, having gotten nowhere in her search for some sort of broadcast about the weather. Hikaru was already heading to where Reina was waiting. Ari wasn't far behind.

"What's going on?" Hikaru's soft voice questioned. "You okay?"

"You have to see this."

Both girls huddled around the younger one, looking out the window to get a sense of what she was seeing. Hikaru's brows were raised high on her forehead, but Ari's brows took the opposite route.

"It's so dark..." she whispered, the poking and nagging at the back of her mind growing.

"That's insane," her best friend agreed. "You can barely see out there."

The sound of thunder seemed to suddenly echo from every direction as it reverberated through the house, shaking its colorful walls. The lights flickered briefly.

Then Reina gasped. "The garage!" With a yelp, she pushed herself out from the huddle and ran toward the kitchen.

"Reina, wai-"

"It's just like it..."

Hikaru stopped in her tracks, whirling back around to face Ari. Had she really just heard her speak? Her voice was so low, she couldn't really tell if the girl had actually spoken or not. "What?"

"My dream. It feels like my dream."

Hikaru hesitated. "Ari... What... What exactly was your dream...?"

"Darkness," she whispered. "Something's coming."

"Wha-" A crash interrupted her next question, and the two of them whipped their heads around in the direction Reina had gone.

* * *

A flashlight. She needed a flashlight. The lights had flickered, and it was too dark to see outside. The garage was open and needed closing, but she could see nothing beyond. She needed a flashlight.

Goosebumps erupted all over Reina's body. She felt a presence behind her, but she ignored it, balancing herself on some boxes as she stretched herself to her limits. The darkness made her paranoid.

 _Almost there..._ the tips of her fingers brushed against the edge of something plastic and cylindrical. _There it is!_ She took one small leap, grabbed at it, then let her weight back down on the boxes. They wobbled, and she knew what was coming. Sure enough, she soon found herself on the floor, pain shooting up her behind. "Ow..."

Slowly, she picked herself up, rubbing her butt with one hand as she wore off the shock of the fall. Now she needed to get the garage doors closed. She contemplated leaving one open for Yumi, but instantly decided against it. With the way this weather was headed, the inside would be a disaster by the time the storm was over. Making her way over, she stood for a moment to study the world that had gone black beyond the garage doors. She was staring straight at a black wall. It was just... black. She could hear the wind, the rustling, the shuffling...

Before she could register what she'd done, her thumb slid the switch on the flashlight upward, sending a soft beam of light into the darkness.

" **Reina**!" Ari slammed the garage door open, Hikaru right behind her. Their eyes went round as they froze. Ari's body went rigid.

Slowly, the blond's head turned to face them. "Ari...?"

There was terror and confusion in her younger sister's eyes. Balls of yellow were floating toward her. Her mind screamed at her limbs to move, to run to her sister, to pull her away. But she could not move.

Closer and closer they got, crowding the large opening of the garage, and as they entered the light, the two could make out claws, then twitching antennas, round heads, bodies of black... and those beady yellow eyes.

Ari's breath hitched in her throat. Those eyes.

But she had no time to think. One of them pounced in Reina's direction, claw extended. Ari called out to her, and the girl turned in time to scream, drop the flashlight, and duck through the mess of black bodies, backing up against the far wall and curling into herself. The light from the flashlight was almost immediately shut out by the swarm.

"Ari! We have to help her!"

"How?!"

Another scream, and Ari turned to see tendrils of black encircling her sister. She stared in bewilderment, panic shooting through her. Her legs automatically took action, pushing her away from the door to jump past the two steps leading down into the garage. She could hear Hikaru calling her name, but she didn't care. She didn't have time to care. The black tendrils had almost encased her sister completely. Hikaru's voice became distant. Ari threw herself in the midst of the creatures, pushing and shoving, desperately trying to reach her.

The creatures turned to face her. More swarmed in, completely filling the gap between her and Hikaru. The tendrils grew, merging together, slowly closing her sister off.

"Reina!" She reached her hand out, her sister's tearful eyes staring back at her in horror, a silent scream escaping her lips, before the vision was stolen from her altogether. "Reina! **Reina** **!** "But she was already gone.

"Ari!" Hikaru's voice broke through, and she felt a jolt of pain shoot through her back. She swung her arm around, but it collided with nothing. Hikaru was so far away... Her vision blurred as tears sprung to her eyes. _Reina..._ "Ari, fight!" Her right arm shot forward on instinct, her hand in a fist, looking for something to hit. Nothing. She was being roughly shoved around in a chaotic sea of black and yellow.

This was impossible. These beings were everywhere. "What the fuck **are** you freaks?!" she shrieked, anger and grief fueling her every breath. "Give my sister **back**!" Swing after swing came of her arms, but it seemed hopeless. Her fists collided with few of them, sending them tumbling or falling back to the floor, but they always got back up. She was now beyond the garage, and it looked like their numbers were increasing.

Something flickered in the corner of her eyes, and she instantly regretted her decision to look. More, thicker tendrils began reaching out from the ground, and immediately following it was a huge ball of black. She watched it grow like a shadow, the horror within her growing with it. Soon, she was staring into another pair of gleaming yellow orbs, each one at least as large as the head of one of the little guys surrounding her.

It didn't stop there. Two hands, one after the other, flew out and slammed into the ground on either side of it as it seemed to be pushing itself up from within the ground. Two small wing like appendages opened up, and it lifted its head as it pulled itself up to its waist, its height easily surpassing that of their home. Legs soon followed, and then it stretched, showing off the large heart shaped hole in its abdomen, before it seemed to slice through the air with its arm, slamming a hand down on the ground. Ari had to shield her eyes as sparks of black and purple erupted, and the force of the impact sent her flying, her body sliding against the grass. But that thought disappeared as quickly as it had come when she withdrew her arms from her face only to see Hikaru floating above the creature, her body caught in some invisible force like gravity, pulling her toward a glowing dark orb looming high above.

She was screaming, that much she could tell by the shape of her mouth, but Ari could not hear her. Hikaru was reaching for her, but she was much too far away for anything to be done. _Fuck that._ Ari forced herself off the ground, using all the strength she had left in her legs to push her in the direction of the black giant, calling Hikaru's name desperately.

Something boomed in her ears, and before she realized what had happened, she was swept off her feet again and thrown back. She screamed, reaching her hand out toward her best friend as the last of her features disappeared within the darkness. Then her world went black.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. III

Black. It was all she could see. She didn't mind black. Black was her favorite color. Such a beautiful color.

But this was just too much.

She took a step forward, the sound of her footstep echoing in the emptiness. Where was she? She frowned, trying to remember.

 _"Ari!"_

Reina. Hikaru. They had been taken. But by whom? And where? Were they still alive somewhere, lost as she was?

Familiar beady yellow orbs flickered ahead. She forced her eyes to focus, but there was nothing.

She heard whispers.

Her feet spun her around and around. What was she hearing? Where was it coming from?

Suddenly she felt nothing beneath her feet, and the sensation of falling invaded her senses. She screamed, but her voice faded to nothing. She shut her eyes against the feeling, panic seizing her. Her breathing shallowed. It took her several moments before she tried to open them again, realizing abruptly that she had stopped. When she looked around, she was floating only inches above the ground, blades of grass barely grazing her feet. She looked up, her feet touched the ground, and she stood still. There was someone there in front of her. He was standing under the cover of trees, and most of his features were hidden.

His lips moved.

She squinted, trying to listen to his words and read his lips at the same time. It was in vain.

Without warning, a light shot from his chest, passing through hers before she had a chance to react. She stared down at the cylinder of light that now dug an empty space within her. _Wha-?_ She turned to look behind her. Reina stood there, reaching out to her. She called out, but it didn't seem to reach her. Her arm stretched out toward the younger girl, but her feet were stuck. Everything was now white around her. The white hole in her chest remained.

 _It's too late..._ A voice whispered. She snapped her head to the right. The figure stood there, hidden in the brilliant light. His lips moved. _Too far..._ he seemed to whisper. _Too dark... it's growing._

"Who are you?" she asked him softly. "Who are you?!" She tried again, louder.

 _I will find you_ _,_ she thought she heard him whisper, and a shudder erupted through her body. He began to fade.

"Wait!" A sudden desperate fear clung to her heart. Who was he? Where did he come from? Did she know him? Could he tell her what was happening? _Don't leave me!_ She had the sudden urge to scream. Tears welled up in her eyes as she choked down silent sobs, but his figure was that of a ghost's.

 _Without Darkness, there is no Light. Without Light, there is no Darkness._ A male voice, soothing and strangely familiar, spoke to her, loud and clear. This was his voice, she somehow knew, but she'd never heard it before.

"What do I do?!" the question came out before she knew what she was saying, and it didn't stop there. Her voice was acting on its own. "You can't leave me here! Tell me what to do! Don't leave me alone!"

His figure disappeared completely. _The key is broken. The bridge is adrift._ Then, everything went black. _Darkness spreads within; we're running out of time._

Her eyes snapped open. His voice echoed in her mind.

 _What...?_

Her brows came to a point. Stars twinkled before her. It seemed she was facing the night sky. Confusion filled her. Stars?

Willing herself to move, her sore arms painfully obeyed by lifting her off the hard, uneven surface she found herself sleeping on. She blinked, trying to push aside the haze that seemed to cloud her mind. _Where am I?_ She groaned, putting a palm to her forehead. _Damn, my body hurts..._ Turning on her side slightly to attempt to stand brought on an immediate wave of vertigo. Scrambling to right herself, she found herself suddenly alert, studying her surroundings with wide eyes.

It was higher ground. She could see what looked like rooftops surrounding her, each merely a few feet apart. She glanced down. Sure enough, there was rooftop beneath her. Now it made sense: what she felt digging into her back when she'd woken were the roof's maroon colored shingles, and the loss of balance was because the friction of her clothes, dark jeans and a black tank top over a black sports bra, against said shingles were the only things keeping her from sliding right down its slopes.

Carefully, she braved a peek down the side of the building. The ground was just far enough that she'd likely break a few bones trying to climb down.

 _Great._ With a heavy sigh, she maneuvered herself onto all fours and crawled around, searching for some other way down. Maybe there was a ladder or something? Or a window? Or a balcony to drop on? Something? Anything?

 _Ah!_ A satisfied smile spread across her lips. _Better than nothing._ Below her were crates stacked up strategically, high enough that she could climb down without having to lose a limb or two.

Slowly, carefully, she slid herself down to the topmost crate, then to the second, then leapt down to the ground. She squared her shoulders, dusted off her hands, then rested them on her hips with a triumphant smirk. _Painful, but it worked._ She stretched her limbs. _Now... some painkillers for the soreness, maybe?_ But where would one go about looking for anything in this unfamiliar place? _Only one way to find out_ , her mind told her. Now she took the moment to look around. It was a small alley around her, barely lit. She followed it along to its exit, and found herself facing open space surrounded by the doors to what looked like multiple shops, a few neon signs hanging above that she didn't particularly feel like bothering her eyes with. A little further ahead was a set of stairs leading down to a courtyard, a café with outdoor tables on one side, a wall of windows and balconies on the other, and a set of humongous double doors that she figured served as an exit of some sort directly ahead.

Instead of heading down the steps, she decided to explore some more; with some luck, she would run into someone who could tell her what was going on. She took a left and continued farther into this strange, oddly silent city. It lead her up some other steps, around a few corners, and eventually to another set of double doors about half the size of the last. She looked around; there was no one to direct her. With a shrug, she placed a palm on each door and pushed.

The hinges creaked softly at the movement, revealing beyond them buildings with blue, green, and orange lights filtering through the windows and glowing from the street lamps. Cautiously she walked forward to the edge, where the ground ended in a balcony overlooking another long, narrow courtyard. Peering into it, she noticed the upper level she was on extended to either side of her, stretching out into two separate walkways, one to her left that stretched on to other buildings and another to her right that folded into descending stairs looking back up at her. She wondered what she would find down there.

Then, strangely, the hairs on the back of her neck lifted. Her body went stiff. With a slow, shaky breath, she carefully turned to look behind her and came face to face with familiar glowing yellow orbs, those annoying antennas making her twitch with every twitch of their own. _Not again._ Her breathing shallowed and every beat of her heart seemed to want to explode against her eardrums. More appeared, slithering around in the ground before popping out to join their friends. They were closing her in against the dark stone rail.

One leapt at her, drawing its claw back, and she threw her arm up to shield herself. It swiped, and she felt it slice through her skin. She hissed at the pain, cursing under her breath.

Another one tried to swipe at her, but she stepped aside at the last moment, her survival instinct kicking in. She had to get away from these things at all cost.

She heard a poof from somewhere beside her, and a strange, blue-clad creature uncurled itself in midair as it clamored into existence right before her eyes. Another poof in the other direction. Then another. And another.

Panic began to take hold. There was no end. They would just keep coming.

Two of the yellow eyed creatures pounced in on her from two separate directions. With a cry, she threw herself down on the ground and huddled into a ball, both arms covering her head. They were on top of her. Others crowded in around her. She screamed. "Get away from me! Go away!" She pushed her arms up in an attempt to throw them off of her, but they would barely budge. Claws of black covered the ground from her line of vision. More claws scratched and dug at her back. "What do you want from me?!" She shrieked.

More poofs filled her ears. At the sound of them, her heart sank miserably. Was this really the end for her? She shut her eyes tight, bracing herself for whatever end came next.

"Get up," a deep voice instructed. One eye opened in surprise before another followed.

She shifted her vision left to right, but she saw no creepy black claws. A few more poofs reached her ears, and she flinched, waiting for something to pounce on her again, the weight on her back now gone. When it didn't, she hesitantly let herself out of her ball, lifting her head to see a pair of legs a mere foot away from her. She traced them up to a white-clad torso, leather-clad arms, shoulders, and finally a head framed in brown hair.

"...Umm..." She blinked.

"Get. Up."

She gulped, but obeyed, holding onto the balcony ledge for balance as she leaned back away from him. "Did you..."

"You should go back to First District."

"You... saved me?"

"Leave," he turned on his heels and began strolling away, a huge sword-thing she just noticed held leisurely upon his shoulders. _Huge,_ she mentally emphasized.

"Wait!"

He stopped.

"Who are you? And what is this place? Did you really just kill those things?" She winced, remembering the swipe at her arm from earlier. Where were the bodies?

He turned only half way toward her, as if he were already bored. "Another new one, huh?"

She blinked back in surprise.

A soft, almost lazy sigh escaped him, and she scowled at him. His behavior irked her. Suddenly he straightened up, looking directly at her now, a brow raised, and for the first time she got a glimpse of the scar etched diagonally across the bridge of his nose. She mentally winced at the thought of such an experience. "You're hurt," he told her simply.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Instead she shrugged, putting a hand over the wound. It stung, warm and wet. Blood. _Ugh,_ she inwardly groaned. _I refuse to see the damage._

"Come with me," he said.

"Why?"

He glanced at her over his shoulder. "To fix it," and he walked.

She subconsciously shook her head at him, finding it hard to believe that of all people she could have been rescued by, it turned out to be the kind of guy who would, **of course** , somehow know how to frustrate her further. It didn't matter that he also happened to be incredibly attractive _._ Not at all. _Shut up. He's trying to help you,_ her mind logically supplied, and she reluctantly obeyed both its implicit and implied commands, rushing behind her rescuer to catch up with his brisk strides.

* * *

Ari stared. And stared. And stared. Then blinked. And then stared some more, gaping. A soft, feminine laugh erupted from beside her.

"How did you do that?"

She giggled. This person – Aerith, as the man had introduced her after some fuss for bringing her to a room in a small hotel – used some kind of... **power** , and in seconds the gash in her arm was gone. Just like that! Vanished! As if it were never there!

Unbelievable.

"It's a healing spell," she explained gently.

"A spell?" Ari looked up into her soft green eyes. "Like... magic?"

Aerith nodded, smiling.

Ari exhaled in awe. Magic. Real magic. Real, in-your-face, showy, sparkly, pretty, colorful, useful magic. She couldn't believe it.

"So, where do you come from?"

All happy thoughts instantly vanished from her mind. A picture of home formed in their place, and she hung her head in dread. Aerith watched silently, her expression softening in understanding.

"I see... Have you just arrived, then?"

Ari stared up at her in surprise. 'New one,' that other guy had said. Did this sort of thing happen often? Were there others in her situation? Did that mean she would find the others here, too? Hope filled her. That was great news! Well... relatively great. But great!

"Those creatures that attacked you are called Heartless," Aerith interrupted her thoughts, elaborating with, "Those without hearts."

"Heartless?" She hadn't asked for an explanation, but she wanted one regardless. It was about time some light was shed on her situation. Those creatures, those **freaks** , stole two of the most important people in her life from her, snatched them away right before her eyes. They stole Reina _._ **Reina!** Who in their right mind would attempt such a thing knowing she was her sister? Ari would find out. Then she'd find a way to erase them if it was the last thing she did.

A calm nod. "They're created from the darkness in people's hearts."

"Why are they after us?"

"They're after every heart," she replied. Then, "Are they what happened to your world?"

Ari stared at her. _My world...?_ She would have asked more, asked how Aerith knew such a thing, but somehow, looking in her eyes curiously, she got the feeling the older girl knew a great deal, enough to overwhelm her current state of mind. Instead, she said, "They took my sister. And Hikaru. Have you seen them? Can I find them here?" It would be perfect. They'd reunite and go home, and forget this crazy shit ever happened.

Aerith watched the girl's eyes light up in hope, but she could only helplessly shake her head. "I'm sorry," she said sadly as the hope dimmed in Ari's eyes.

Silence remained as Ari fought the sadness that threatened to flood her senses. _Reina..._ She pushed it aside forcefully. This was neither the place nor the time. Then something occurred to her. "That man..." she began, "he fought them. Got rid of them... Saved me."

She nodded. "That man is Leon."

"Leon..." she repeated. "Can you fight them, too?"

Another nod.

"Will you teach me?"

Finally, a reaction. Apparently, this question she was not expecting. She remained silent for a moment, contemplating the suggestion. "I'll speak to Leon," she finally answered with a smile.

"Hmm..." this wasn't the answer she wanted. As strong – _and attractive_ , she reminded herself – as he was, he made her feel **awkward** _._ She didn't much like this Leon. But she figured, seeing as how he had brought her here to have her healed, Aerith's abilities were probably more concentrated on healing. She mentally groaned. Did Aerith really have to include him?

The healer giggled, as if she somehow had an inkling as to the thoughts running through Ari's head. "Don't worry. He's not so bad. I promise."

A skeptical grin was all she could muster. "But I don't have any weapons... Or magic." That's right. Her fists didn't seem to faze those **Heartless** in the least. Training would be useless without something to train **with**.

"I'm sure we'll think of something," Aerith smiled again, and one look at her sent a wave of relief through Ari's body. No wonder she was a healer. She made everything seem so... calm.

Finally, Ari mirrored her smile. "Thank you."


	4. Chapter 4

"Try to hit me."

Ari stared at the brown haired man before her. Specifically, the brown haired man with a giant "gunblade," they called it, resting against his shoulder leisurely.

What?

He just waited, watching her with that same bored expression on his face. Honestly, had Aerith not asked him personally, he probably would have never even bothered with her.

More importantly, did he really expect her to attack him? That thing was really intimidating, to say the least. She wasn't so sure this was a good idea anymore.

"What are you waiting for?" Obviously, patience was not on his list of virtues.

She braced herself, sighing deeply in an attempt to calm her nerves. Alright, Ari. Just... do what you usually do. What did she usually do? She was only ever good at getting into grizzly fist fights with idiots and bullies, the silly kinds of kids that sought comfort for their insecurities in the misfortunes of one as pure and precious as her sister. Sure, she'd always had an affinity for sharp weapons, but she was in no way **experienced** with or against such things. This is suicide... I'm gonna get skewered. She shifted her body into a fighting stance and didn't pause, launching herself at her skilled opponent. She drew back a fist as she prepared for a punch, but found herself hitting air upon execution.

With a blink, she paused and looked around. Shit he's fast, she realized. He had sidestepped her attack as if it were nothing.

"You're too slow."

"Tch." He certainly knew how to piss a girl off. He was lacking **nothing** in that department. She twisted on her heels and leapt at him again, sweeping her leg up for a blow to his head. He ducked, swinging his gunblade around at her other foot, successfully sweeping her off both feet. She caught the weight of her body with a palm to the ground, pushing herself back up and around to face him.

"Hm. Pathetic. Try again."

And so she did. Again and again, he evaded her attacks. Her muscles were still sore, she was getting thirsty, and this was getting her nowhere.

"You're slowing down," he told her after what seemed like her umpteenth failed attempt, studying her tired, petite frame. "Two minutes to regain your breath before we resume." He strolled to a wall and leaned back against it, closing his eyes as if to tune the world out.

Her body dropped to the hard, paved ground. This is ridiculous, she thought incredulously. No matter how many times she went after him, by the time she reached him it was if he were never there to begin with. How fast did she have to be to catch him? Where did he learn to move so quickly? He wasn't even **close** to breaking a sweat, and here she was already having trouble catching her breath.

When did she suddenly get so weak? She lifted a hand to her chest, running her fingers absently along a familiar pendant. The vision of tears and terror marring her sister's features played itself in loops within her mind, accompanied cruelly by the soundtrack of her laughter from only hours earlier that same day.

No. She could not afford to stop. Not ever. Not even if it killed her. Not if it meant the suffering of her sister.

Her steeled gaze lifted to Leon, a silent determination hardening her resolve, refueling her will to try again. She would land a hit. She would fight on equal ground. And if she had to, she would **surpass** him. She no longer cared what it took to get there. If it was possible, if the potential was there, she would find a way.

Slowly, she picked herself back up again, waiting for him to open his eyes. He did, and the look in his eyes told her he had been waiting for her to do so all along.

He pushed himself off the wall and took a number of steps forward, this time leaving his gunblade behind. "Let's try this again."

She sprang forward without missing a beat.

* * *

"Well, gotta admit. She definitely has the heart," a petite, short haired ninja looked down at the two fighting in the open space below, leaning on a single arm held steady against the rail overlooking the narrow courtyard.

Aerith nodded beside her. "I wonder..."

"Hm?" The ninja lifted her brows in question, but kept her eyes on the progress.

"She's looking for her friends, too. Just like him."

This time, the shorter girl turned to face her. "Heh? Maybe we should have sent her with them, then. She's not gonna find anyone hangin' around here."

But Aerith shook her head. "I think we're taking the right path, training her."

"Not ready, huh? Poor girl." She bent forward, folding her arms atop the rail as she turned back to the two below.

"I don't think she'll stay that way for long, Yuffie." Aerith smiled. "She's handled it well so far."

"You really think it'll do any good?" Despite the occasional sign that hinted at some basic combat training, the girl she saw was obviously struggling beyond her means. If there was going to be any major breakthrough in her progress, it might take more time than they actually had. It didn't look like she would be any real asset to the cause as far as Yuffie could see.

Aerith just smiled down at them. "You never know," she said softly.

To this, Yuffie only shrugged. "Well, she certainly isn't lacking any will."

* * *

"This is **amazing**!" Two hands and a face pressed against a window, looking out at the endless array of stars beyond – all of them other worlds, they had explained to him.

"Every time one of those disappear, a world has been swallowed by the darkness," a high, coarse male voice explained.

The words saddened and angered him all at once, adding to his determination against the Heartless.

"We're almost there, Sora," another, deeper voice said.

"Already?!" Sora pushed himself away from the window beside him and turned his attention to the view up front, where his companions sat side by side in the cockpit of their gummi ship. Sure enough, there was a world steadily growing larger as they closed in on it.

Maybe, just maybe, Riku and Kairi would be waiting for him there.

* * *

"Dammit! Dammit, dammit, **dammit!** " Leon was, in a word, **infuriating**. She had pulled every trick she had up her sleeve, every move she had **and** didn't have was attempted, but that bastard **refused** to stay **still**. She couldn't even manage one hit. One hit! And they had been going at this for hours! How many hours, she didn't know anymore. She had lost count after the first.

"Enough." He jolted her out of her thoughts. "No more for today." He tossed a bottle of water at her which she forced her arm to swing up for.

She winced when she caught it. My body's gonna be a pain in the ass tomorrow, was the only thought in her mind as she chugged the water down. Now all she longed for was sleep.

"You should drink this." Footsteps approached her as she drank the last of the water and she instantly recognized the voice as Aerith's. She turned around to look at her as she capped the now empty water bottle. The gentle healer had a small vile in her hand.

"What is it?"

"A potion. It'll help you get some of your strength back."

She took the vile from her slowly, examining it directly in front of her face, her eyes squinting at it. It looked... creepy. But if Aerith told her it was okay, then chances were it was okay, right? She chugged it and instantly cringed. Such a bitter taste went down her throat, it took more energy than it was worth to stop herself from gagging. That stuff was positively horrid. But as she waited for the effects of the bitter taste to fade, the effects of the potion itself began to course through her muscles, easing the stiff pain that was keeping her from moving as freely as she would have liked. It was like... well, magic.

"Wow. Thanks." She smiled gratefully.

Aerith returned the gesture. "You're welcome. You should get some rest now. You'll likely have an early start tomorrow."

Ari detected a hint of apology in Aerith's gentle voice, which probably meant things would only be getting harder from here. Leon's a slave driver, she decided. Even his friends know it. But she only nodded, too tired to argue or comment. Instead, she followed Aerith silently back to the hotel.


	5. Chapter 5

For those who are familiar with the manga in addition to the game, you'll be quite familiar with bits of this chapter.

* * *

Ch. V

Three little ducks. That's what she was looking at. Three little ducks, identical but for the different color shirts they wore, the purpose being to tell them apart, no doubt.

Who the hell dresses their ducks?

Ari just stared.

After days of suffering through Leon's rigorous training, he offered her a single day of reprieve under one fine caveat: the list of shopping errands she now held between her fingers. So here she was, staring, bewildered, at the intriguingly random sight of three little ducklings in a shop with not another soul in sight. They waddled around, busying themselves with the tending of the space, a surprisingly heightened sense of awareness for their well stocked surroundings aiding them. It was only moments before one of them noticed her. Abashedly, it startled, crying out comically in alarm and earning the attention of the other two.

Then, it spoke.

"Oh! A customer! How can I help you? Uhm... Oh yeah, are you here to buy or sell?"

She drew her brows together, not quite sure how to approach this particular situation. In the silence, the green-clad duckling blinked.

"Erm- Hello there? Is there something on my face?"

She blinked back. "You can talk."

He blinked again. "So can you."

Another blink, this time with a mild blush. "But... Um..."

"I'm Huey!" One in red dropped what he was doing and pounced upon the front counter, waddling toward her before plopping down enthusiastically. "That's Duey," he pointed at the one in blue, "and Louie," he said, indicating the one who'd spoken first.

"You're ducks."

Huey cocked his head, Duey laughed but continued his chores, but Louie shot back, "You're human. What's your point?"

"Uhm. Well..."

"So how can we help ya?" Huey said.

There came a muffled crash, presumably from somewhere outside, its effects reverberating through the floor and shaking briefly the walls of the establishment. Ari flinched, but the others seemed more exasperated than anything else.

"Probably that crazy old coot building weird things again!"

"I bet it's that moogle cooking up something wacky."

She no longer cared who was saying what, or frankly how. For a moment she wondered if she should rush out and take a look, but quickly thought better of it. Between her curiosity and the possibility of disappointing Leon, well, she'd naturally much rather deprive one in favor of avoiding the other. The thought brought with it a sigh, another blink, and a shake of her head before she pushed aside the immediate oddities at hand and set back to work as Leon's errand girl.

* * *

" **Never again!** "

Yuffie froze mid-step as she descended the steps into the courtyard of First District. Eyes rounded and head reeled back, she slowly let settle the comical sight of a frazzled trio making their way through gates of Traverse Town: Donald, ever the rambunctious old duck, was falling over himself giving poor Sora the scolding of a lifetime while their bipedal canine companion Goofy simply stumbled on beside them, dazed from what she assumed was the crash she'd heard only moments ago. From the looks of things, the culprit was clear. It wasn't difficult from that point to put two and two together. They had obviously crash landed – thankfully – somewhere beyond the gates of town. She almost shook her head, but as they approached was forced to stifle a bubble of laughter at the entirely nonchalant expression on the young Keyblade wielder's face. Sheepish as he seemed, he was anything but as apologetic as Donald thought he ought to be.

It was good to see them getting along so well.

"Hey Yuffie! We're back!" The boy beamed and waved.

Yuffie grinned devilishly. "I can see that. Sounds like you boys are having tons of fun out there." Donald focused his wrathful attention on her, and she instantly shot her hands up in surrender. "I kid, I kid!"

He eyed her suspiciously.

"I sort of crash landed our ship."

" **My** ship!"

"Right, right," Sora said appeasingly.

The duck mumbled a string of curses in return.

Yuffie chuckled. "No worries. We'll have it looked at and fixed up in no time."

"How's everything here?"

Yuffie turned her attention to Goofy as Donald finally fell into silence. "Peachy. How're things out there?"

They looked amongst each other, and Sora smiled briefly. "It's amazing!" He said. "But... the Heartless are everywhere. Do you know where we can find Leon? There's something we need to ask him."

Her response came smoothly. "Sure. You can probably find him in his usual training spot. There's a waterway in the alley behind the hotel. Take a look."

"I will. Thanks!" He shot forward without a second thought.

"Sora, wait up!" With an exasperated huff, Donald took off after him.

Calmly, Goofy turned to the ninja. "See ya later, then." He sprinted on behind them.

Yuffie watched as each of them disappeared in turn from sight, laughing softly when she was alone once more, though this didn't last long. As she turned back to continue into the courtyard, she quickly found herself face to face with their young trainee rounding the corner, a bag of items swinging from one hand and the other holding a small sheet of paper before her slightly bowed head. The girl looked up, mildly startled.

"Oh. Yuffie."

"Hm?" Her lips instantly stretched into a wide smile. "Hey, girl! What're you up to? Doin' a little shopping?"

Ari eyed the bag in her hand, then Yuffie's smile. "Running errands for Leon."

"Oh, **really**? So I guess you'll be headed there soon, huh?"

"Uhm... do you need me to relay something?" That smile of hers hadn't budged. Ari regarded the ninja cautiously.

"Nope! Not at all. Say hi, will ya?"

"Uh...?"

"Go on then."

Ari pointed, the paper creasing noisily in her grasp. "I still have more to do."

Yuffie's expression became one of curiosity as her eyes followed the length of Ari's arm to the accessory shop doors looming behind her.

"Oh. Well, can't be holding you up then." One dismissive wave later, as they began to part ways, she stopped once more and turned back to Ari. "Almost forgot! He's in the waterway behind the hotel when you're done. He trains there often. Likes the solitude or something." She started off again, throwing another wave over her shoulder. "Anyway, catch ya later!"

Ari watched her leave as she mulled over her words. Right. A gorgeous, evil slave driver waiting for her alone a dark waterway behind a hotel. She frowned and vigorously shook her head. Yuffie was completely insane if she thought she'd be taking that bait. Now slightly annoyed and utterly confused, she warily made her way up the remaining steps and through the threshold of the accessory shop, wondering for a moment if she'd meet any more chattering ducklings running this one, too. Or a goat, perhaps. Or maybe a dragon. That might just have been worth all the weirdness and insanity, actually.

"How can I- Oi! Another kid, huh?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin. Eyes wide, she stared at the source of the gruff, boisterous voice that seemed to hit her like a train to the face. The shock soon gave way to relief at the sight of a single man standing behind a counter. This realization then led to her features warping into in an exasperatedly inquisitive one.

"Another kid? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Ah, forget it. No helping it, I guess, the way things are."

Confused and frustrated, she tossed the irksome question marks settling heavily upon her head to the wind. Clearly, everything insisted on being weird and vague this day. It was time to get over it. "Well... whatever. Look. I'm a kid with money. You run this place or what, old man?"

Thrown aback, his face met hers with an unamused scowl, his jagged features tense and blue eyes glinting dangerously. She met it head on with a silent challenge of her own, and for a moment they remained that way, each staring the other down remorselessly until he let forth a great guffaw and settled into a tight, teeth baring grin. "Alright little lady. Welcome! You wanna shop, I'm your man. Not your **old** man, mind you."

"If I'm a kid, you're definitely old."

Momentarily disgruntled, he laughed once more. "Point made, sassy pants." The tension dissolved from his wide grin. "S'what I get for doing a buddy a favor, huh? Ain't my shop, you know. My real job is way more interesting." He lifted his hands to rest them on his hips. "So what can I getcha?"

Finally relaxing, she proceeded. After this point her final errand was a breeze, and soon she was on her way back out into the courtyard and contemplating her next move. She considered for a moment taking Yuffie's suggestion to heart, then shook her head to rid it of the thought. As a matter of fact, she would do no such thing simply **because** Yuffie suggested it, she decided. Frankly, she'd had enough of Leon anyway, and if he enjoyed the solitude then he certainly wouldn't mind her taking her sweet time to get back to him. Besides, there were other, safer routes she could be taking. She liked safe.

Aerith it was, then.

Bags swaying and vials clinking, Ari focused drearily on finding Aerith before any stray Heartless found her searching first. Thankfully, she'd had much better luck since arriving, and for the most part the Heartless seemed to have a less imposing presence with every passing day. For a brief moment, it prompted curiosity. But that would have to wait.

With high hopes that Aerith would be waiting in the first place she looked, she decided said stop would be the house in Third District. With the thought of the Heartless weighing on her mind, her muscles grew tense as she just about tiptoed her way up the stairs to the single door overlooking the slope. At the top, she lurched toward the door, diving in and sighing in relief as it creaked to a close behind her, the only sound that followed her. A hand to her heart brought mild amusement at the speed with which it pounded against her chest.

A familiar chuckle found her ears, followed closely by her name. Ari smiled. Safe. She directed her smile to the brunette before her eyes drifted to the steaming tea kettle and glasses laid out before her.

"Would you like some tea?"

Curiously, Ari arched a brow. "Who are you making so much for?"

She smiled. "Leon has some visitors. Why don't you join us?"

The other brow joined the first. "Visitors? You mean more like me?" The thought broke her heart and gave her hope all at once. Maybe...?

"Well... something like that. I'll make you a glass, too. You should meet them. Come with me."

A light flickered in her mind's eye. She thought back to her conversation with Yuffie. Nodding shortly, she accepted the invitation and followed Aerith to their destination.

* * *

"So you found a keyhole."

Leon swept his eyes thoughtfully over the three that sat before him, the light of a lantern flickering nearby, creating shadows that danced playfully across their figures as they sat in a circle upon the mossy floor of the small cave carved deep within the waterway.

"Yep! Well, more like it found us. The Keyblade started glowing, and then there was this sound, like a door locking." Sora held up the weapon in question as if to emphasize his point.

"Ansem wrote about them in his report. According to the report, every world has a keyhole hidden somewhere, beyond which lies the heart of that world."

"The heart of the world?" Goofy echoed in wonder.

"There is no heart in existence that escapes the taint of darkness, people and worlds alike. Within this darkness, the Heartless reside, biding their time as they grow in the silence of the darkness and ignorance of the unaware, until they've devoured the hearts of all. Such is their nature."

Donald inadvertently shuddered.

Leon continued. "The worlds whose hearts have been claimed by the Heartless are shattered and swallowed into the darkness, lost to us forever."

"Forever?" Sora gasped.

Leon's eyes drifted to the Keyblade by Sora's side, and the trio's eyes followed suit. "That, Sora, is the reason you have to continue wielding the Keyblade. It chose you, and as its chosen, this task falls to you. The hearts of the worlds **must** be locked to avoid the infestation of darkness."

A stunned silence prevailed over the group, lengthening steadily as they let Leon's words sink in.

Sora gulped. "But... I don't know if I can..."

"You can do it, Sora." A new voice intervened, and the four looked up to find Aerith approaching with a tray full of goodies in hand. Beside her, coming up a few steps behind, was a new face with which Sora was instantly curious. "It's not so bad," Aerith said.

But he was already focused on the next big thing. "Who're you?" Curiously, he tilted his head. "I don't think we've met before, right?" He pushed himself up into a standing position and held a hand out to the newcomer, beaming as he did. "I'm Sora! What's your name?"

Momentarily shaken off guard by the boy's forward friendliness, realizing briefly that he couldn't have been any older than she, Ari opened her mouth to speak, but Leon took the liberty of beating her to it.

"This is Ari. She landed here some days ago after her world was attacked. Like you, Sora, she's lost and searching for her friends."

Ari scowled at Leon as Sora's expression softened considerably, but it was quickly replaced with another shining smile. "Don't worry. You'll find 'em! I know it."

Finally, she turned to him and said, "Have you?"

"Huh?"

"Found yours."

He paused. "Well... no. Not yet. But I definitely will! No matter what." The hand he'd offered to her in greeting was now fisted in determination, hanging over his midriff.

Such conviction; it begged admiration.

Goofy stood next, appearing beside his unguarded companion. "I'm Goofy, and this is Donald." He motioned to a seated duck. "We're Sora's friends. Nice to meet ya."

Her eyes roamed incredulously over the new acquaintance. Tall, was her first thought, then, **dog**. It's a **dog**. A **dog** and a **duck**. Another duck. That's four ducks and a dog. Talking dog and ducks.

What the hell kind of place was this? Maybe she was just in a coma somewhere and none of this was actually happening.

"R-right... Okay then. Nice... to meet you, too," she said, wide eyes blinking slowly as her wits dangled dangerously far from reach.

"Now that we've settled introductions, we come bearing tea and snacks! Anyone hungry?" Aerith held up the tray in an enticing presentation.

Even in her stunned disposition, the way their faces lit up instantly sent warmth to Ari's heart, and she suddenly found herself holding back a boiling giggle as three stomachs simultaneously growled in approval. Aerith's laugh rang out and echoed like bells through the cave. Within moments, all six were gathered around as tea was served and snacks were wiped clean from the tray.

"So," Aerith said, "what will you do, Sora? The Heartless will follow you wherever you go now that you have the Keyblade. You know this, don't you?"

Ari's attention immediately piqued at the statement.

Sora nodded, a frown marring his boyish features.

Ari claimed the short silence for herself. "Where have you been that they've been following you?" Then she suddenly blanched and began looking around her. "Wait, does that mean...?"

"It's highly possible," Leon warned. She stared at him.

"We've been off world," Sora overlapped.

Her stunned expression shifted dramatically between the two. Off world? Everything in her mind came to a grinding halt. Aerith had mentioned worlds, too, hadn't she, that first night she'd woken up in this place? Suddenly the literal nature of her words hit Ari full force.

"W-wait just a minute here," she dragged out.

"Your world and this one are just two of countless worlds. Every star you see out there is another world shining in the night sky," Aerith calmly explained.

Every star. She looked up at the rock ceiling. Well, that made perfect sense, but-

"That's right," Goofy said matter-of-factly. "And every time a star goes out, it means a world was swallowed by the darkness."

Her eyes snapped back to him. The memory of the darkness that had ripped the girls apart flew rapidly through her mind. Her world was one of those stars. Did that mean her world was gone? A distinctly acute iciness began crawling its way up her limbs.

Aerith brought a gentle hand to rest upon her shoulder. "That doesn't mean all hope is lost."

Ari's vision blurred. Through the haze of her mind, she heard Aerith speak like a voice through mud.

"I don't... understand..."

Leon shifted the focus as he rose and slowly made his way over to a far wall. "You can't let the darkness overrule your hearts, no matter what happens." He bent forward to a wooden chest resting against the wall in shadow, opening it and reaching in. As he straightened back up, a long, wrapped object now bundled in his hands, he looked at Sora. "Let the light and your friends be your strength." He started back as he spoke. "We'll help in whatever way we can, but we can't go with you. However, there is someone here who could be of more help to you on your journey." He sat back down with the object still hidden and resting over his lap. "Sora, take Ari with you. Together, you can fight the darkness and find your friends."

Her horrified expression turned now to Leon, unblinking. Maybe it really was a coma. Please, her inner voice pleaded. Home couldn't really be gone.

 **"Absolutely not!"**

Ari's shoulders twitched and stiffened at the sound of Donald's high pitched voice, a cry that left a terrible ringing in her ears as it echoed against the surface of the surrounding stone. He was on his feet, his feathered hands balled into fists. All eyes were now on him.

Sora was stunned. "Huh? But why not?"

Donald turned to stare at him. "We're on a mission here! We don't take charity cases."

Pride wounded, she reacted automatically. "I'm not a charity case!" Was she seriously being belittled by a duck right now?

"She could be of great help to you," Leon said calmly. Donald was aghast, the look on his face leaving no room for doubt regarding his feelings on the matter.

"I don't think so!" The bird turned his head away and crossed his arms stubbornly over his chest. "We have no room for extra baggage."

Ari opened her mouth to counter, but once again Leon beat her to it, opting for a diplomatic route.

"You'll undoubtedly encounter many dangerous enemies along the way, and your journey isn't likely to be getting any easier. It wouldn't hurt to have someone who can fight with you."

Ari huffed. "Don't I get a say in this?"

Leon turned to his trainee. "There's no question you have a long way to go, but it won't do you any good staying here. Especially if you want to find your friends."

Silenced, her lips pursed. Leon was right on both accounts and she knew it. Aside from her training, it made little sense now to sit around here waiting for something to happen, and with the knowledge of other worlds out there, even if her world **was** gone, there was a still the chance that all her loved ones were out there somewhere just as she was, though Donald was obviously intent on being a barrier to it.

Luckily, Sora seemed to have made up his mind already, and he was on her side.

"Leon's right. Come with us! We'll help you find your friends."

" **What?!** "

"Right? Come on, guys! Goofy?"

Two pairs of eyes, one hopeful and one warning, fell heavily on the canine. Goofy suddenly found himself in a stickier situation than he'd have liked. "Uh, well," he started slowly, bringing a finger to his chin in thought. Carefully, he said, "The king's order was to stick with the Key, right? And... Sora has the Key... So that means if Sora helps someone with the Key, we help them, too, right? And maybe she can even help us find the king!"

Leon and Aerith exchanged glances, one smirking and the other chuckling softly as Donald deflated and swiped a heavy hand helplessly over his face. Comic as the vision may have been, a familiar echo left Ari feeling unsettled. The key is broken. Her dreams had almost been entirely forgotten up until that point, but now the words whispered then were practically a mantra, and she could not seem to forget neither them nor the voice that accompanied.

"What is this Key?"

A moment of silence passed as the spotlight shone on her. Leon spoke again. "He means the Keyblade. Sora's weapon – or rather, the weapon that chose Sora."

As if on cue, the boy in question lifted it once more toward the center of their gathering, where all eyes present could feast upon it.

As far as Ari could tell, it just looked like an oversized key; no blade to speak of, except for the fashion in which it was forged, to be held as a blade and operated as such. "The weapon that chose you?"

It disappeared in a flash of light as Sora shrugged. "I guess so."

"It's a special weapon," Leon said. "One made of light."

"That's the thing that Aerith mentioned earlier. The Heartless will follow you so long as you have it? But if it chose you, then it's not like you can get rid of it."

"Why would I do that?"

She paused. "You want them to follow you?"

He gave her a lopsided grin. "Well, when you put it that way... But if it means there's something I can do about the darkness, my world, and my friends, then I say bring it on."

"And they will," Leon said before anyone else could speak again. "So you each have to be prepared." His hands moved slowly to unfurl the cloth heap in his lap revealing a colorful, shimmering blade. "Ari, this is for you. I can't promise it's as good as Sora's Keyblade, but you'll need a weapon on your journey if you're to join them and find your friends, too."

"For... **me**?" She gaped at the thing; had she seen such a vision anywhere else, she might have thought it purely for decorative purposes. It was a pretty object of soft, bright colors, beginning with a green hilt that wove into delicate tendrils reaching out from either end of the cross-guard to form an abstract, intricate pattern around the base of the blade, ending in what Ari imagined to be delicate arms reaching up in hopes that it might reach the same height as the blade itself, which then faded from green to icy blue all the way up to its diagonal tip. From her position, she guessed the blade could have shared the width of her forearm. Two more slightly thicker tendrils curved downward to form a basket over the grip, and beyond that was a pommel that rounded out to an elegant point. Despite its beauty, it looked like a deadly, graceful weapon in Leon's hands. His fingers curled around the grip as he held it up for her inspection, the cloth sliding to the floor beside him. Whoa.

"There's a shop here in town where you can create valuable custom items you wouldn't otherwise find elsewhere. We had this made for you," Aerith said, smiling. The corners of Ari's lips curled upwards of their own volition at the declaration.

Leon presented her the sword with both hands from which she lifted the weapon awkwardly and delicately. "I don't know what to say."

He simply set his weight against his hands as he leaned back. "You don't need to say anything. We're in this together and we have to support each other. Such friends might not be so easy to come by out there."

Ari beamed, utterly baffled at the man's heartfelt sentiment that now shone through the usual persistent edge in his demeanor. She answered with a nod. "Thank you."

"Find your friends, both of you, and succeed in your mission no matter what. We can't let the darkness win." He looked at both Ari and Sora in turn, and together they smiled and nodded before turning to face each other with equal resolve and excitement. But one immediate problem lingered in Ari's mind.

How the hell do I use this thing?


End file.
